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Thread Number: 37308
/ Tag: 80s/90s Vacuum Cleaners
Bought a Fantom - don't know why |
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Post# 398087 9/11/2018 at 19:24 (2,052 days old) by JustJunque  (Western MA) |
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Hey all.
No pictures yet, because it's pretty dirty. But I bought a Fantom Thunder off of Craigslist. And I'm not sure why. I don't have any interest in vacuums this new. I have no interest in bagless vacuums. I honestly don't expect to ever use it. It has some wear and tear, and, like I said, it's pretty dirty. But it seems to be pretty complete. I don't know what all it's supposed to have with it, but it has a floor tool, a rectangular dusting brush, the HEPA filter housing, what appears to be an extra hose with a crevice tool attached to it. It even has the owner's manual with a bunch of inserts. The warranty card, and several other pieces of paperwork that I haven't really looked at yet. I think the only reason I bought it was because I've seen on here that they're getting harder to find. They have sort of a cult following. And they're sort of a future collectible. I don't expect to live long enough to see it become some sort of valuable collectors item. It was a novelty, impulse buy basically. And for only $20, I figured it's not like I was breaking the bank. If I ever get motivated to clean it up, I'll post some pictures. Or, if anyone who knows and likes these has any questions about it, I'll try to check it and provide answers. Btw: Man, these things are heavy! Carrying it down to the basement, it makes my Convertible feel like a stick vac! Barry | ||
| Post# 398092 , Reply# 1 9/11/2018 at 20:00 (2,052 days old) by broomvac (N/A) | ||
Some love them, most don't. I'm one of the ones who does.
If you have owned, or even used, a Dyson upright, you will see plenty of Dyson design language in Fantoms. They are like prehistoric Dysons. I find this very interesting. The vacuums just have that early cyclonic revolution feel about them. Fantoms seem reasonably valuable, even today. Watch Ebay and you will see that most Fantoms sell north of $100, even when they are beat. | ||
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Post# 398094 , Reply# 2 9/11/2018 at 20:16 (2,052 days old) by JustJunque (Western MA) |
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One picture
Here's this, in case this tells you anything interesting.
Barry
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| Post# 398103 , Reply# 3 9/11/2018 at 22:26 (2,052 days old) by Gj3476 (Prosper,TX) | ||
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Post# 398109 , Reply# 4 9/12/2018 at 00:12 (2,052 days old) by Rivstg1 (colorado springs) |
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Post# 398115 , Reply# 5 9/12/2018 at 04:54 (2,052 days old) by JustJunque (Western MA) |
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Kelton:
Thanks. I like that! It's just really how I feel. We have limited space, so I don't know why I bought a fairly large vacuum that I'm not really interested in. Regarding the vacuum: Is this an earlier example of the Thunder? Even though I know nothing about them, a couple of things caught my eye. The logos are decals as opposed to being printed right onto the plastic. And most of the Thunders that I've seen have a different manufacturer name. Is it Fantom Technologies or something like that? This one is IONA. Barry | ||
| Post# 398143 , Reply# 6 9/12/2018 at 21:31 (2,051 days old) by broomvac (N/A) | ||
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Yes, that one does seem pretty early. It’s one of the earliest I’ve seen, but I haven’t seen many. It has a white bumper and the sticker logos, as you mentioned. It also says “Iona” instead of “Fantom Technologies.” I’ll bet it has a white hose, too.
Does the vacuum have a HEPA filter? Does it say “Thunder” on the bin? If no and no, then it is really early. That would make it a “Fantom Domestic,” the Thunder before it was called the Thunder. I encourage you to continue giving it a chance. There is a possibility that after you clean it up and use it a few times, you will begin to appreciate it more. | ||
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Post# 398156 , Reply# 8 9/13/2018 at 13:03 (2,050 days old) by JustJunque (Western MA) |
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Hey Erik and broomvac
It does say Thunder on the bin, and it is a sticker.
And it does have a HEPA filter, although the housing is off at the moment, and there's no filter in it. The hose is light colored, but I don't know that I'd call it white. Unless it's just really dirty. I'd say it looks looks grey? Is the crevice tool sort of permanently attached to the hose? And, if the hose is supposed to stow on the machine somewhere, as it looks like it should, there might be some sort of bracket or something missing. If nothing else, I'll probably try to clean it up a bit, and take a few pictures. Barry | ||
| Post# 398178 , Reply# 9 9/13/2018 at 22:19 (2,050 days old) by man114 (Buffalo NY) | ||
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Crevice tool should separate from the extension hose and stow in a bracket on the machine. The hose itself doesn’t stow. Color is not really white white it’s some off color, it’s irrelevant to age, my 9amp unit was light colored, most others have been black, probably just dictated who sold them. | ||
| Post# 398182 , Reply# 10 9/14/2018 at 00:44 (2,050 days old) by broomvac (N/A) | ||
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I had always associated the whiteish/grey rubber components with the early ones. However, it is clear to me now that age and color are not perfectly correlated. Thanks for the info.
The vacuum’s main hose stores on the back of the machine, as shown below. The handle wand simply slides inside it. There was an optional extension hose; this one did not store on the machine.
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| Post# 398213 , Reply# 12 9/14/2018 at 14:42 (2,049 days old) by Ultralux88 (Denver, Colorado) | ||
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